Guidance Through Formal Accreditation Processes

The process of getting health and safety management processes and standards into place in order to attain accreditation to a scheme has been very beneficial to many contractors.

Some tenders or contracts will only be offered to contractors who are members of specific schemes. This is because it will assist a prospective client in their duty to appoint contractors with the skills, knowledge, experience and organisational capability to undertake the work.

Following a government report, a body called Safety Schemes in Procurement or SSIP was founded in 2009. Supported by the HSE, SSIP aims to ensure that the different member safety schemes achieve an acceptable standard and offer mutual recognition. As a consequence, contractors may be accredited under one scheme and recognised by tenderers who ask for another scheme.

Being accredited by at least one scheme that is a member of SSIP is nearly always beneficial in terms of raising standards, reducing future paperwork and opening up opportunities to work for clients who specify accreditation by a scheme.

Choosing which scheme to apply to is based on which scheme is most often specified by clients in the sector in which you work. This is because although standards of health and safety should be broadly similar (and should incorporate the template specified by the government under the health and safety module in PAS 91), most schemes have additional questions and are designed to meet the needs of particular sectors. Some schemes are ‘Deemed to Satisfy’ only part of other schemes so additional questions or information may need to be offered. The ‘Deemed to Satisfy’ chart is available on the SSIP website and updated from time to time.

BSA is able to guide Contractors through the process of gaining accreditation, helping to ensure that the vital management and reporting processes are in place as well as helping contractors complete the paperwork.

If you want to know more – phone our head office on 01483 467270 during office hours.